Andy Eaton

partner

A real life Aqua Man.

Andy Eaton just might actually be a “fish out of water.” Having served in the U.S. Navy as a Nuclear Submarine Warfare Officer and Navy Diver, Andy is equally as comfortable on land as he is in the sea.

Spending his youth in Cairo, Egypt and Stavanger, Norway, Andy’s family put down roots in Albuquerque, New Mexico when he entered middle school. His propensity for moving around also guided his studies in higher education as he earned his bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering from New Mexico State University, a master’s in engineering management from Old Dominion University and an MBA from Western Michigan University. Indeed, he’s seen a great deal of the world’s surface through his travels to almost 40 counties from the Arctic Circle to Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.

Andy finds his role at Southwest Michigan First to be a natural fit as he is drawn to purposeful organizations. After 14 years in a variety of management roles within Stryker Corporation, Andy is now part of the Development Team at Southwest Michigan First. Andy regularly meets with corporate and community leaders to share stories of how the organization’s mission ties to the execution of its strategies around jobs creation and leadership development.

Calling Southwest Michigan home for more than 14 years, Andy, his wife Tammy and three children, Maya, Drew and Layla, enjoy cooking and, of course, partaking in water activities together. He lists Bermuda, Hawaii, Australia and Guam—all described as “awesome!”—among his favorite places for diving and observing the aquatic environment. He is also an accomplished martial artist holding second degree black belts in Hapkido, Tang Soo Do and Taekwondo.

“The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short, but in setting our aim too low and achieving our mark.” – Michelangelo